The preferred embodiment concerns a method and a computer program product to output document data divided into pages, in particular to output to a printing apparatus.
A plurality of encodings—what are known as page description languages (PDL)—have been developed for the creation, transfer and output of document data. Different page description languages have proven to be particularly suitable depending on the type of application (for example for the creation of predominantly text documents or graphic documents) or according to the amount of data (for example for smaller data amounts in an office environment or for large amounts of data in the generation of invoices from databases).
For example, the Page Command Language (PCL) for the output of documents to printing apparatuses (developed by the Hewlett-Packard Company, Palo Alto, U.S.A.) is frequently used in office environments. The PostScript (PS) language (developed by Adobe Systems Inc., San Jose, U.S.A.) is frequently used in graphical advertisements. The Advanced Function Presentation (AFP) language, including diverse architecture specifications and developments—for example the Mixed Object Content Architecture (MO:DCA), and especially the Intelligent Printer Data Stream (IPDS) language used to control corresponding digital high-capacity printing systems—is used most often for the printing of large data sets from databases. These latter cited languages and architectures were originally developed by the International Business Machines Corp., Armonk, U.S.A. and today are developed as an open standard in the AFP Consortium (www.afpcolor.org), an industry consortium.
Recently, the Portable Document Format (PDF)—originating from Adobe Systems Inc., San Jose, U.S.A.—has been established for the exchange of document data between different application programs both in the office field and in the graphical field. Furthermore, the Personalized Print Markup Language (PPML) format, developed in the Print On Demand Initiative (PODi) industry consortium, Rochester, U.S.A, is known for printing from databases.
Due to the plurality of possible technical environments in the creation, relaying and output of document data, difficulties often arise with regard to the compatibility, transfer security, data loss or even the processing speed. With regard to security, in invoice printing it is particularly important that, in the porting of an existing application for the output of invoice data from a database to a new output system, it is ensured that all processing steps in the new environment run reliably and without error. Therefore, security-critical workflows are optimally left unchanged in such portings, and the modifications that arise due to the porting are optimally linked to those process steps (or to software components controlling these) that are less relevant to security.
The page description language PCL 5 is described in the PCL 5 Printer Language Technical Reference Manual, Hewlett-Packard Company, HP Part No. 5961-0509, 1st edition, October 1992, for example. There Output Bin Selection Commands are specified on Pages 4-15, what are known as macros, are described and macro commands are specified on Pages 12-1 through 12-110, and the calling of macros and the use of the “auto macro overlay” function are described on Page 24-9. These contents are herewith incorporated by reference into the present Specification.
An MO:DCA printing system in which control commands—what are known as Medium Modification Control (MMC) commands—related to the recording material are provided with which control functions for the recording material can be executed in the printing apparatus (for example the selection of a feeder tray) is known from EP 0 651 318 A2.
A printing system in which a background information is provided and is printed as a background on demand in order to achieve a copy protection for printed originals is known from US 2008/0130034 A1.